


One by One

by FloffyStorm



Series: Restart? [1]
Category: Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - No Despair, Alternate Universe - Undead, Angst, Choking to death, Everyone has a perspective, Falling to death, Gen, Your fave will die, being boiled alive, being crushed, being drowned and attacked by a shark, being electrocuted, being poisoned, being punctured by a sword, being shot, being shot with a syringe? and stabbed with a scalpel?, being stabbed, dying by heartbreak, dying of heart disease(?), falling down the stairs and snapping neck
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-24
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:56:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 15
Words: 15,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26631736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FloffyStorm/pseuds/FloffyStorm
Summary: Hope's Peak's Class 77 get along well enough with each other, all thanks to Chiaki. She loves all of her friends, they were practically her life aside from video games. But what will happen... when they start to die... one by one...?This an AU where there were no killing games, yet everyone dies anyway. I will add tags as this goes on.Also, credit to rosered961 for helping proofread each chapter.
Series: Restart? [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1937434
Comments: 118
Kudos: 99





	1. Kazuichi Soda

The smell of oil dominated the surrounding area, which was only a musty workshop, as Kazuichi worked on the engine of a pretty awesome vehicle as music filled the air. Although, the main part that the Ultimate Mechanic really loved was the engine, taking it apart and putting it back together again over and over… although, he wasn’t trying to do that at the moment. The goal was to fix up the dingy car, which he originally was going to scrap for parts but decided to try and rev it up anyway.

The car itself had a lot of fixing needed. The hood was completely gone, the taillights had been smashed in, mirrors had to be removed and Kazuichi nearly cut himself on the windows. It looked like it was supposed to be a gray color, but the paint was chipped and it was rusted beyond recognition. Although, Kazuichi was able to take apart the engine and reassemble it, therefore rendering it useful, yet there was still more to be done.

After fixing up the engine, and checking it over to make sure it was fixed, he then jacked up the vehicle, getting ready to go under for more repairs. As he rolled under with his toolbox nearby on his creeper seat, the mechanic started thinking about how late it was becoming. His phone, which had been playing his music, had said it was around what? Eleven-thirty or something? He would probably have to stop soon if he wanted to wake up on time to go to school.

Hope’s Peak, the school which he attended, the school that specifically scouted him. Thinking about that place made Kazuichi think about his friends, he could call them friends, right? They haven’t betrayed him yet, and he was pretty sure they wouldn’t, so that was the definition of friend in his book. He smirked a little, he loved seeing all those people in his class. Especially Sonia.

Lost in thought, and having the music blasting, Kazuichi nearly didn’t hear the creaking noise. It sounded like… something was groaning? As if it couldn’t handle the weight of something- SHIT!

The Ultimate Mechanic had no time to think or react. The jack responsible for holding up the vehicle snapped down, and the hefty car came crashing down on top of him. There was only a few seconds of pain before the world turned black, and Kazuichi’s mind shut down.

[---]

As Chiaki waited in the classroom for her friends to arrive, she played on her Game Girl Advance in the meantime. Almost everyone was in, except for Kazuichi, and Chiaki smiled at her classmates. Then, the door opened for the final time, so she lowered her game, looking over as Chisa entered. Uncharacteristically, she had a grim look on her face, and she looked as if she were holding back tears.

Confused by such an expression from the usual optimistic teacher, Chiaki put her game down entirely, waiting for what she may say. Nothing good could come out of it, or maybe it’s nothing, and Chiaki is looking too deep? No, there had to be some bad news coming. Chiaki suddenly didn’t feel very well.

“Class…” Chisa started, taking a deep breath. “I’m afraid I have some… terrible news.” Chiaki knew it, something bad was happening- or happened. “Last night, our dear classmate and friend Kazuichi Soda… passed away.”

Chiaki froze. She expected bad news, not _this_. She heard one of her friends start to cry, she heard gasps, and some relapsed into silence. Instead of doing any of that, Chiaki merely sat there. One of her friends… died?

The rest of the day, Chiaki was out of it, almost as if she was disconnected from the world. She never even thought of the prospect of any of her friends dying, not even in the future! How could this happen…? How could the world take one of her classmates away…?

Time seemed to somehow move too quickly, to where it was two days later, and they were at the funeral. Her head was bowed, not really wanting to face the reality. After that… the next day… class was still in session. At least Miss Yukizome didn’t bombard them with work or anything, they were allowed to sit in silence if they wished. Which, the whole class did.

After class, Chiaki walked towards the fountain, her head still lowered. She bumped into who she considered one of her best friends, Hajime. He had started talking, but apparently, her lack of silence and her expression were very noticeable, and he began asking what was wrong. Chiaki only teared up, and hugged him tightly, not wanting to let go in case he went, too.

**_[Kazuichi Souda has logged offline… 14/15 students playing.]_ **


	2. Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fuyuhiko gets upset after the death of his classmate, so he goes for a walk. Alone.

Damn it. Damn it, damn it, damn it. Damn it all to fucking HELL. How could something like this even fucking happen? Fuyuhiko balled his hand into a fist, punching a wall. He slightly shook his head, unable to process the fact that someone in his class- the people he had finally been warming up to- was dead. It wasn’t even murder, he can’t even get revenge as he did with his sister! He might’ve not been able to stand the bastard sometimes, but, he was still a fucking friend!

“Young master, I urge you to calm down.” Peko insisted from where she was standing in Fuyuhiko’s dorm.

“Whatever. What. Fucking. Ever.” Fuyuhiko replied, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and his face screwed up in a scowl.

“Lashing out will not undo the events of what happened, I assure you.” Peko continued. “We must remain calm, alright?”

Fuyuhiko grunted, still pissed off. What did she mean, remain calm? Didn’t she understand what happened? Why did Peko have to act like this all the time? He wasn’t the only person in the world if only she’d understand that!

“I’m going for a fucking walk.” He grumbled, standing up straight and walking out the door. Peko seemed to start to follow, but he stopped her. “Alone.”

After leaving the dorm area and walking- or more accurately, storming- into the city, Fuyuhiko thought that the world could be so unfair. His sister, for example. She died before he could really say that she was the best little sister, and would’ve been a better Yakuza leader than him. But no, that’s not how reality worked, it took away those you actually cared about before you could express it.

Now that he thought about it, as he went down the winding streets, he really should show Peko more appreciation. What if she died, as Natsumi and Kazuichi did, gone without another word? He’d never be able to tell her what he thought of her. That she wasn’t just his bodyguard. Yeah… As soon as he went back, he was going to tell her.

A sudden clatter in an alleyway nearby threw Fuyuhiko out of his thoughts, and he really looked around. _Shit_ , He thought. _This is the fucking terrible part of town, the one that's perfect for disposing dead bodies in._ There were more run-down looking houses and not many cars drove around here, and usually, this is where the Yakuzas did their business with other Yakuzas. He turned to leave, before hearing another clatter in the same alley nearby.

He took out a handgun, he always kept one on hand, and looked around, ready to face whoever thought they were being funny. Or it was a street rat, who cared. He really felt like shooting at least something vaguely threatening. That was when the final clatter happened, then the click of a gun, and bullets began whizzing by his head.

_Shit!_ With little time to react, he began running for cover and dived behind a corner. Who the fuck thinks they can try and harm me? He looked over his shoulder, trying to see where the bullets were even coming from. There, a figure in the street, and another right by. He aimed and began shooting back, not caring if those fuckers died or not. Nobody shot at Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu and lived.

Just when he heard the empty clickings of their guns, he jumped from the corner, smirking and with just enough bullets left for their asses. But at that moment, his gun jammed, and his eyes widened as they pulled out another gun, and he heard- and saw- a few bullets fly towards him. His reaction time was too slow, and he felt pain blossom in his side, arm, and then, his chest. Soon, he was on the ground, and he couldn’t feel anything anymore, and Fuyuhiko saw the world turn to nothing.

[---]

Chiaki had been silent ever since the funeral of Kazuichi, even if it was a day later. She tried to mumble a few things to the others, mostly consolation, but it was no use. Teruteru, a very good friend of Kazuichi, was still upset, murmuring about how nobody would be able to be a taste-tester as good as he had been. Then there was Sonia who was saying how Kazuichi had been actually doing better, respecting her space and all.

There couldn’t have been anything worse than losing a friend, but it seemed Chiaki would be proven wrong. She looked around the gloomy classroom and saw that Fuyuhiko and Peko were missing. Her gut churned, unease creeping in as her mind raced. Please no, don’t tell her… Miss Yukizome entered, seemingly talking to someone on the phone. She had a confused look on her face, then a shocked one, and suddenly she covered her mouth, tears welling in her eyes. Chiaki’s own eyes kept wandering to Fuyuhiko and Peko’s seats, unease still settling in.

Miss Yukizome then turned to the class, putting her phone down, and took a deep breath. “Students… I’m afraid that more terrible news has come…” The homeroom teacher closed her eyes. “Another one of our dear friends and classmates, Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu, has died.”

And just like that, the class once more became silent, then the gasps, and then Mikan began to sob. Chiaki felt as if she herself could cry, another one of her friends-! She looked down at her desk as people began mournfully expressing despair. Two of her friends… gone in just under a week…

After class, Chiaki shuffled mindlessly to the fountain, whereas usual Hajime sat and waited. She looked at him, one of her hands shaking reaching out for him without her permission. Once more, she hugged him tightly, afraid to let go.

_**[Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu has logged offline… 13/15 students playing.]** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And another one down, another one down, another one bites the dust!  
> Baby Gangsta is gone, wonder who's next? Heheh  
> Are you enjoying this story? Feedback is appreciated!  
> I'll try to make future chapters longer, by the way!


	3. Akane Owari

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akane gets extremely frustrated at the deaths of her classmates and takes it out on punching bags atop Hope's Peak.

Wind whipped past her face as she stood atop Hope’s Peak’s roof, cracking her knuckles with frustration. Then, she charged forward, anger fueling her every move as she practically leapt to kick at a punching bag, causing it to swing off its chain. Akane watched it soar off the building, making her growl in frustration as she clenched her fists. She needed to punch something that wasn’t so easily defeated, but Nekomaru was busy and so was everyone else. She shouldn’t blame them, though, as two classmates of theirs had died.

Although Akane wasn’t affected that much, she was used to the sight of the dead. How would those two be any different? No, she was perfectly fine. An urge to punch something hard took over, and she practically caused a dent in the wall. It wasn’t fair! Why was she feeling so terrible and out of focus? Just thinking about the classmates that were gone made her so angry, and she began punching the wall more fiercely than before, even if her knuckles were becoming bruised. 

She only stopped when her stomach growled and she crossed the roof towards the bag she brought up, not wanting to have gone all the way to the cafeteria when she wanted to train on the roof all day. She took out a family-sized bag of chips and began furiously eating, sitting at the edge of the rooftop, looking down at all the ant-sized people with glares. Her anger caused her to break the chips before eating them, but she shoveled them in her mouth anyway, too busy being angry to care. As she nearly finished the bag, she looked down again, realizing that she was nearly off the edge, so she huffed and got up, walking away and tossing the empty bag in the trash bin nearby- or at least, she assumed it went in.

Once again, she was back to punching and kicking at swinging bags, each punch hurting her bruised knuckles, but she didn’t care. This was the only way to vent her frustration, and she was going to keep punching the bag until she felt better or at least hungry. However, her ears picked up footsteps from the rooftop door, someone coming up the stairs. She cracked her knuckles, getting ready to jump whoever came through that door, then slightly shifted when she saw it was Nekomaru.

Akane leaped at him but was easily caught by the team manager. “Hey! I easily predicted what you were going to do!” He crossed his arms. “If you’re going to try and attack someone, try and put that person off guard first!” He shouted in his usual, whole-hearted voice.

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Akane mumbled, going over to her bag again to take out the large plastic container that held the roast beef. “I thought you were busy today?”

“I wanted to see how you were doing!” Nekomaru exclaimed, and Akane rolled her eyes.

“I’m doin’ fine. I’m just training.” Her voice was mixed with frustration and resentment.

“Training? At such a time?” Nekomaru raised a brow.

“Yeah, why not? Gotta somehow gets the urge to punch something to go away, right?” 

“Are you sure that’s the only reason you’re training?”

Akane blinked, unsure of how to respond. Alone for a reason? “Well, duh, why else would I train other than be physically stronger than before?”

“Well, there’s always hidden reasons for every move we make! Especially during such an unfortunate time! “ Nekomaru seemed to look out towards the horizon. “Are you sure you’re not just training to get your mind off of what happened?”

“...Of course! I’m just trainin’ for the sake of training! There’s no other reason! Besides, it’s just like seeing a dead body in the streets, right?!” 

“...Got it. I knew there was something else! You just gotta let out those unbearable feelings with a shout! Tell me why you’re actually training!”

A surge of frustration and pent up rage-fueled Akane’s chest as she began punching the sandbag again. “I don’t know why, but just thinkin’ about our dead classmates makes me so MAD! Isn’t it just like losing any other person?!”

“But don’t you think of your classmates as friends?!”

“Well, yeah! Why wouldn’t I?!” 

“THEN YOU’VE GOT YOUR REASON RIGHT THERE!” Nekomaru shouted, and those words made Akane stop.

“Wait, so the reason I feel angrier about my classmates being gone is that I think of them as friends?” Akane looked down. “Is that why I wanna punch somethin’ so hard it goes flying?”

“Everyone grieves in different ways! You just gotta do it in whatever way helps, and if punching something helps you, then I will also help you!” 

“YEAH!” Akane smiled for the first time since she got on the roof, and readied her fists to start fighting.

It was short-lived, however, she really should’ve checked if the building rooftop was clear. A few minutes into fierce battling and Akane landed on that godforsaken chip bag, which made her lose balance. Trying to regain said balance, she tried doing a few backflips as that worked in the past usually, but then she saw her problem. She was doing a handstand at the very edge, trying to keep there, waiting for Nekomaru to help, begrudgingly.   
Although, a smell wafted up to her, a wonderful, mouth-watering, tasty smell. The only kind of smell that made her unsteady, making her shake with hunger and made her mouth a waterfall. Her arms were wavering at that moment as she inhaled the scent of a whole buffet, which really made her question where it was if it was so strong. But a buffet wouldn’t help her now, it actually made her situation worse, as her imbalance made her lose her handstand, now she was holding on very loosely to the edge. Nekomaru shouted, having just reached her, but he was too late.

Her hands slipped off the edge, and she was plunging through the air, wind flowing through her hair as she stared up at Nekomaru, who looked down with a hand stretched out. She saw him run off, presumably to call for help. Akane didn't really think much about it, she could only see the sky get further and further, it was as if time was slowed down as if it didn’t want her to go yet. She didn’t want to go yet. 

All the fights she could have won, the training her and Nekomaru could have had! A feeling of desperation hit, and she flailed to try and reach for anything that could help save her, but alas, there was nothing. All she got was hitting the ground below, hearing a sickening crack, and feeling blood ooze from her head. She was a mess on the ground, looking up at the hazy and blackening sky, feeling helpless… she really should’ve thanked Nekomaru for the talk, huh? 

Breathing had gotten hard, and staying awake had gotten harder. It was then when she shut her eyes for the final time, Akane stopped fighting.

[---]

Everyone had seen her fall, as they were in class at the time being silent, and Chiaki had happened to look out the window and saw Akane pass. She covered her mouth, seeing the officers and ET members take her away. Another classmate, another friend, gone like the wind. When will it end? Was the universe going to take every one of her friends? Chiaki put her head in her hands, not wanting to hear Chisa say it officially. Three classmates, gone in just a week and a half, as if they were nothing to the world.

She was in auto-pilot the entire rest of the day, unable to fully cope with what was happening. The class was three students shorter. Nekomaru was incredibly upset, tears falling down his face as he mumbled about trying to help Akane and failing her. Chiaki didn’t want her classmates to be upset or sad in any way, but she understood this. What she didn’t want to hear was Ibuki screaming that they might all die, but thankfully Chisa put an end to that. 

Chiaki couldn’t focus when they were dismissed, she merely walked to the fountain where Hajime was. She didn’t know how- as none of those deaths of her classmates were on the news, but Hajime knew of her departed friends. He hugged her, reassuring her that he would try to help her in any way he could. She thanked him, embracing the hug as tightly as she could.

**_[Akane Owari has logged offline... 12/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "One by one we bite the dust, kick the bucket and begin to rust"  
> For some reason, Akane was pretty difficult to write?? I hope this is good, heh  
> I wonder if somebody will figure out the pattern? Might need to wait for three chapters to see...


	4. Sonia Nevermind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sonia is dismayed at the deaths of her classmates and makes a promise with one of her closest friends.

“It’s just so terrible!” Sonia sighed as she served herself some of the lunch in the cafeteria. Next to her was one of her closest friends, Gundham, who mumbled in agreement. “How could so many of our class be gone in just a week?” She continued, beginning to walk over to a table.

Instead of eating a bit separate from their more close friends, the class of 77-b decided to eat together in the cafeteria. It was a unanimous decision as if all of them were too scared that they might never see their friends again. At least, Sonia was. She sat down across from Chiaki, who was merely poking at her dish, and Gundham sat next to her. On her other side was an empty seat, in fact, there were a few empty seats. One next to Nekomaru, and one next to Peko. Sonia felt her heartache for her classmates, knowing that their close friends were gone.

There wasn’t much talk, only lowered and hushed voices who barely spoke about much. The atmosphere was very grim and Sonia could understand. Death was never a good thing, as nobody deserved to die, especially when they were still in high school, and it was their friends nonetheless! Would there ever be a moment when they could go back to smiling and having fun? But what fun will they have if not everyone was there?

The mere thought of losing another made Sonia feel unwell, and she began nibbling on her lunch. What if someone else were to go? Someone like… shoot, what if Gundham was to go next?! Wait, why was she thinking such ridiculous things? Why did it sound as if the whole class were on a hit list?

Still, she turned to her animal-loving friend, determination in her eyes. “Gundham?” She tried to get his attention, which worked since he turned to her with a raised non-brow. “May I ask something of you?”

“...What would that be?” He responded, narrowing his eyes.

Sonia took a breath, then, in a low yet commanding voice, she asked; “Do you promise not to leave this mortal realm? As a good friend, I do not wish to see you go!”

The breeder looked taken aback in shock, then softened a bit. “Keheheh, only if you promise the same thing.”

“Of course!” She furrowed her brows in fierce perseverance, adamant about this promise. “I have an idea, let’s, as they say, shake on it!” She smiled at the decision, holding out her hand, which Gundham seemingly hesitated before taking. After a shake, Sonia held on for a moment longer, a part of her not wishing to let go. However, all things must be let go at some point.

She smiled, content at the promise, and took the apple off her plate. At the moment she lifted it towards her mouth, Gundham’s hamsters- or the Four Dark Devas of Destruction, began frantically squeaking at them. The breeder began to try and calm them down, but they seemed to grow increasingly hysteric. With confusion, Sonia took a bite of her apple, looking down at the four, who stared at her in… dismay? An alarming thought crossed her mind, and she turned to Gundham.

“I read somewhere that animals can sense coming death, do you thin-” She croaked at the end of her sentence. “Do… d-do yo-” She dropped her apple, shakingly grasping at her throat. She tried to speak, but no words came.

Shuddering, she began coughing harshly, each one causing her throat to hurt, as blood began coming out from the hacking. Breathing was no longer an option as her eyes were wide like plate dishes, the world becoming blurry. She could hear shouting, and somehow she had fallen backward off her seat, but someone seemingly caught her. Everything was getting dark, she couldn’t cling to her promise. 

Her hand reached out at the blurry figure of Gundham, and then the princess fell into a deep sleep.

[---]

Chiaki stood there, her mouth covered by her hand, as she watched Sonia’s hand fall from the other side of the table. Tears were streaming down her face as everyone screamed around her, mostly for someone to call an ambulance. Mikan had rushed over to the ultimate princess trying to check for any sign of life, but Chiaki knew. Chiaki knew. The nurse had started frantically searching for the cause, then sputtered that she was poisoned.

Was… was someone starting to try and kill off the rest of her class? Chiaki wanted to run at that moment, she couldn’t take it anymore! How many more of her class were going to die before the universe was satisfied?! She sniffled, pulling her hood over her head and burning a hole into the ground as eventually, Sonia was carried away. She didn’t want to look up at any of her class, especially not now. Not when this just happened. 

Without thinking about it, she began walking out of the cafeteria, and towards the fountain.

**_[Sonia Nevermind has logged offline… 11/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “Now, turn red. Tempt Snow White to make her hunger for a bite.”  
> A few quick updates!! I won't be posting another chapter for a week or two, sorry, I'm going to be very busy  
> And also, just wanted to remind you guys that this is part of a series, they won't be dead for long (at least... not completely.)  
> The final thing, thank you for viewing this story so far!


	5. Teruteru Hanamura

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teruteru decides to make lunch for everyone! Yay! Nothing bad is going to happen! He's a very careful cook!

The echo of footsteps down the hall were only accompanied by Teruteru’s voice. “I’m fine, Ma, it’s… just… no one really knows what’s happenin’, I don’t really want all my friends goin’.”

“You know I’m just worried about you, sweetie. I’m so sorry about your dear friends,” His mother’s voice answered.

“I know, I know. I’m just… it’s makin’ me real depressed thinkin’ of my classmates who’re gone.” At first, he had tried to deny it. Especially the first classmate, one of the few to see past his tendencies. “And makin’ me even more depressed to think of the rest of my class, some of ‘em are takin’ it real hard.” This was true, while Teruteru had mourned just like his class, he still tried to persist, even when his heart was heavy. However, some classmates weren’t doing their best. Chiaki was the worst case, she had stopped talking as much, or even playing her games.

“Oh dear… oh! Here’s an idea, why don’t you try and cheer ‘em up with a nice homestyle special?” His mother suggested, her voice good-natured.

“Great idea, Ma! I’m gonna hurry to the kitchen now! I’ve already got a million different ideas in my head goin’! I’ll talk to ya later, Ma, be sure to rest sometime!” After a response from his mother, Teruteru hung up and rushed the rest of the way to the kitchen, determination putting a pep in his step.

The sizzling of oil and the smell of spices filled the kitchen as Teruteru made his way around, preparing dishes for the day. Although… there would be no excited taste-tester this time, waiting to try another of his fare as they talked about some of the people- mostly the girls- of their class. But this was no time to dwell on that, he needed to continue cooking! What better way to cheer up his friends by cooking a large meal? Fresh fruits and veggies are chopped and put into a large pot on the stovetop, Teruteru cheerfully and carefully putting in some spices.

Each step into creating the home-style meal for his class was handled with care, the chef trying to top all other dishes. This was for a special reason, to uplift his classmate’s moods and yet to also remember the dead. By this point, he knew what everyone absolutely favored over the rest, and he was trying to add a little bit of everything in one meal. This is why he’s creating more than just one singular dish, but a large pot surrounded by a few smaller dishes. Those smaller dishes were everybody’s favorites, except for those who weren’t there, that’s where the large pot came in, being evenly distributed with the dead’s favorites inside.

Inside a kitchen with multiple dishes being cooked at once, one had to be careful not to slip up. Teruteru handled being in a kitchen alone quite well, as there was less of a chance to have an accident inside, but what did one do if they thought they were alone when they weren’t? He maneuvered around the counters and the stovetops in the school’s kitchen, each footstep careful as to not make a mistake. After a quick glance at the floor, Teruteru confirmed it was clear, then went to take the large, boiling pot off the stove. 

As he turned and took a step forward, his foot connected with something unknown on the floor, and his heart stopped beating as he was going down, seeing boiling water and foodstuff coming towards him. Burning, white-hot pain erupted on his face, and he let out a scream- he shouldn’t have, because the large pot hadn’t completely stopped spilling. It was as if he was being burned inside and out- which could be an accurate description of what was happening, one might suppose. He couldn’t breathe, his body felt as if he were in a boiling sea, being dragged to the depths, burning was all he could feel. 

Then, after choking on scorching water and feeling the burns sizzle into his skin and peel it away, it stopped. Yet, so did he.

[---]

Retro sound effects of a game console were the only sound Chiaki could hear, and yet it wasn’t the same as any other time. Her class was practically silent, except for the few subtle noises of sniffling or shuffling. Everything else, the sounds of happily chatting classmates or the noise of laughter, was ripped away. A ‘Defeat’ screen filled her hollow gaze as she slipped up, and she merely shut the game off and put it down. With a tired, despair-filled gaze, she looked at her classroom.

Non-smiling faces were what she was greeted with, even some with tears, however hard they tried to hide it. If only there was something she could do- or could’ve done. Her gaze swept over a certain spot, and her stare was filled with a jolt of terror. An empty seat, not the other empty seats which she knew would never be taken up again, but the one of a certain chef. That.. no… where was he?

She got up, her actions almost entirely fueled by unease and chilling apprehension and walked over to Miss Yukizome. “Can I go look for Teruteru?” She asked directly.

The homeroom teacher looked a bit confused, then concerned. “If that helps.” 

As Chiaki left, she saw some alarmed faces in her classroom look towards the empty seat. Yet, she didn’t look back as she went out into the hall, going through each winding corridor to the cafeteria, her footsteps echoing in the silence. She stopped right before entering the kitchen, her shaking hand reaching for the door with the small window, eyes widened as she saw through. All she could see was a hand on the floor, one with multiple degree burns.

Swallowing hard, she opened the door, walked in, and screamed. She screamed and screamed, and screamed, her hands desperately wanting to move to cover her eyes where the tears ran from, but they didn’t. She screamed loud enough to alert a security officer, who called an ambulance, and who tried calming her down. All she could hear was white noise, her legs finally moving, backing away. 

She ran, and ran, and ran. Out of the door, out of the school, and into the fountain. Her hands fumbled for her phone, and she began dialing. Shaking violently, she waited. And waited.

But Hajime never picked up.

**_[Teruteru Hanamura has logged offline… 10/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhhh, insert pun for being boiled alive.  
> Also, I'm back from Hiatus, wooo.   
> Uhh, somethin', somethin' love your guys' comments!  
> I also apologize for describing the boiling water scene a bit grotesquely. If it is, that is.  
> Also please tell me if I make a mistake somewhere


	6. Ultimate Imposter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Having enough of their classmate's deaths, Ryota- Imposter is determined to stop this. We know how well that went in the game, don't we?

Trying to keep up the appearance of a socially anxious, emotionally unstable, and incredibly fearful person while people were dying around them was getting increasingly difficult. There were times where their voice had gotten sturdy when calming a classmate, or when their true personality came out when another classmate died. But it was no longer their goal to impersonate Ryota, it was to keep their classmates alive. Yes, they must not be found out, not even by those they consider close friends, but they no longer wanted friends to die.

After the news of Teruteru that morning, they decided that was enough. How could so many of their classmates die within a week and a half without ruling it as murder? After the fifth, they decided someone was actively targeting them, there had to be! And they will find the culprit. 

“We’re all going to dieeeee!” A voice cut through the thick silence of dread after the news of Teruteru, causing Mikan to start crying and Hiyoko to start sobbing.

“No, no we’re not Ibuki.” They mumbled, their voice shaky as usual, or at least, as Ryota.  
“But that’s what you’ve said before! Then more have gone!” Ibuki refuted, the normally cheery musician now having a somber yet still loud tone.

“Ibuki, this time I’m going to make sure nobody d-dies,” Just in time, they stuttered the last word to raise no alarm. “I don’t want to watch our friends die either…”

“But- but how is Ryota going to make sure no-one else dies? It’s not known who’s next! It could be Ibuki!” The musician looked incredibly freaked out.

“Ibuki, calm down! I’m going t-to try my best, I…” They side-eyed Gundham, having nearly said ‘promise’, but caught himself since the breeder had not said a word except ‘she promised’ since Sonia’s death. “I… I’ll make sure of it, okay?

“...Okay, Ibuki trusts Ryota.” 

During the lunch break, they would’ve sat with the rest of the grieving class, but had to check on Ryota. They walked into the room where the animator was currently working, practically dead to the world as he worked. With an extra container in hand, they set down a meal next to Ryota, who looked as if he hadn’t been taking their advice, as they noticed barely touched breakfast next to him.

“Hey,” They announced their presence, waiting for some sort of explanation as to why Ryota hadn’t eaten the last meal they brought for him.

“Huh? Oh, hey Anon.” Was the answer, the ridiculous nickname Ryota decided since Anon didn’t really have a name.

“Can you explain this?” Anon held up the last meal he gave Ryota, which was a full plate of breakfast. 

“What… what about it? I-I ate some… but I’m almost finished with this scene…” 

“How long have you been working on that scene?” Anon asked next, their gaze hardening with annoyance. “When have you last got out of your chair?”

“Um…” Ryota held up a hand and began counting on fingers, which gave Anon their answer.

“Get up, you’re taking a lunch break with me.” Anon huffed, practically dragging the sleep-deprived animator out of his chair, who protested all the way.

They set him on the bed, a more comfy seat than the chair then gave him the lunch they brought from the school. Anon sat next to Ryota with his own lunch, beginning to eat while also thinking about their classmates, trying to make up a plan to keep them all alive. Next to them, Ryota was fidgeting, as if he wanted to say something. He was usually like this when Anon had a stern expression on their face, so they softened their expression so he could ask what he wanted to.

“U-um… Anon?” Right on cue.

“Yes?”

“Are… are you okay? You seem like… something happened. Did… d-did another classmate…” Ryota’s sentence broke off.

Anon closed their eyes, then looked at him. “Yes.” They heard Ryota make a sympathetic sound, then felt shuffling from the side of the bed. 

Arms suddenly wrapped around them in a hug, and they looked at Ryota with a raised eyebrow. “I-I’m sorry, I-I know that y-you really love your friends…” Ryota sniffled. “Hearing you talk about them as if they were family… then… this… Anon… I’m so sorry…”

“You don’t have to apologize,” Anon huffed, but did accept the hug, then let go when Ryota did. “No-one knows why this is happening to us, but I’m going to find out.”

“Y-you’re gonna make sure nobody else d-dies?” Ryota asked, fidgeting again.

“Yes. No one else is going to die or it’s over my dead body,” Anon answered, their face grim.

“D-don’t say that!” Tears welled in the corner of Ryota’s eyes. “Don’t s-say you’d rather die! Are-aren’t you a classmate? S-so that means you, too!”

Anon raised a brow, then smirked. “Heh, alright. Not over my dead body, instead, nobody will die or else I’ll have to become head of a police department and investigate my class, is that better?”

“Y-yes.” Ryota nodded, a slight grin on his face. 

“Alright, lunch break is over. Make sure you finish your plate and get some sleep sometime.” Anon stood up, grabbing their bag, and going for the door.

“S-see you after school.” Ryota waved goodbye.

“Yes, see you after school,” Anon replied.

They walked into class, sitting down in the depressing atmosphere as they went on with studies. These past few days, Miss Yukizome had been giving them free time for whatever they wanted to do. Which, Anon could agree with since this gave them time to check in on Ryota more often without anyone realizing the contact on their phone was themself. However, during this class period, Anon felt tired. Was it because they were up half the night trying to formulate a plan? Most likely.

Their head rested against their hand, eyes threatening to close as the world darkened. Then, they closed their eyes and drifted off for a nap. They never woke up.

[---]

Outside, the world looked dreary, just like inside the classroom. Multiple desks had a few flowers on them, in tribute to their fallen classmates. Chiaki continued to stare outside, seeing some passersby as the world seemed to continue. Nobody seemed to care that her class was emptier. A bit slowly, she turned to look at her classmates, cheek in hand as her eyes were void of much hope. Most of them were looking down, except for Hiyoko who was speaking quietly to Mahiru, or Ibuki who was trying to annoy Ryota.

Sighing, Chiaki looked back out the window, then furrowed her brows, looking back towards Ibuki. The over-eccentric musician had grown attached to the animator recently and was always trying to break him out of his shell. This was why she normally poked or prodded him to get his attention, which normally worked after the first few times. So why was Ryota still asleep? In fact, when did Ryota ever sleep in class?

Getting up, with shaky legs, Chiaki went over to Ibuki, who was poking and calling Ryota’s name. The animator looked asleep, but when Chiaki looked closer… she froze a bit, then went over to Mikan silently, poking the nurse and gesturing to Ryota. With a concerned and panicked expression, Mikan bounced up and rushed over to the sleeping student.

Ibuki tilted her head. “Oh, hey Mikan! Are you trying to wake up Ryota, too?”

“U-um, Ibuki, c-can I-I check on h-him?” Mikan shakily asked.

“Okay! But why?” Ibuki blinked at her with confusion.

“J-just because…” Mikan began checking on Ryota, starting to gain the other’s attention in the class. Then, with a fearful cry, she screamed. “W-we need to call a-an ambulance! H-he’s not breathing!”

Chiaki felt her heart stop as she saw Miss Yukizome pull out her phone, calling emergency team members. The gamer could barely take it anymore, she started crying. This made six. Six of their classmates who didn’t deserve this, who didn’t deserve to be taken from them.

The ambulance took Ryota away, the scene growing all too familiar. Chiaki waited until after class, then ran to the fountain. She waited, trembling. She tried calling him.

But Hajime never came.

**_[Ultimate Imposter has logged offline… 9/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When someone asks me what killed Imposter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fq3abPnEEGE&ab_channel=PIFTS.exe  
> (No, I will not tell you how long I've waited for this moment to use this link.)  
> Anyway, I will be uploading chapters Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 12:00 pm EDT time!  
> Also, did I mention there are spoilers? I feel like I have to mention that.  
> There's spoilers.


	7. Peko Pekoyama

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peko is sword training, but can't seem to concentrate. All she can do is fail.

The sword clattered to the ground of the training area as Peko slipped up. This was usually highly unlikely for her, as her movements were always well calculated and executed. However, today was an exception, as her mind was unfocused. Yesterday, they lost two classmates, and Peko was unsure of how to deal with this. Her mind was still focused on the simple fact she failed Fuyuhiko.

She had let him go, alone, how could she have done that? Why did she let him go on his own, she was supposed to protect him! Instead, he’s dead and it’s all her fault, she should have done something more. If only she persisted in walking with him.

After his death, Miss Yukizome had pulled her aside, knowing that Peko was Fuyuhiko’s bodyguard. It wasn’t a memorable chat, mostly just the teacher telling Peko that she understood if she were to not show up in class most of the time. No, it wasn’t memorable at all.

Taking that advice, however, Peko skipped most classes. Instead, she had been brushing up on her swordswoman training, although it has been proving very difficult as of late due to her mind drifting. This was causing major mistakes to happen in her usually articulate moves, and it was causing her distress. Maybe that’s why she wasn’t able to protect Fuyuhiko.

She picked up the blade, sighing once more as she readied herself against the dummy. She wasn’t using her bamboo shelling, but the blade within. This was because, for some reason, when she went to grab her usual bamboo sword, the wrappings were already off. Even though she didn’t quite remember removing them herself, she had been forgetting things as of recently. She disliked this aspect. Instead of rewrapping the bamboo, she decided to train with the blade underneath.

With three precise movements this time, the dummy cut into three sections. Peko sighed, closing her eyes a bit, thinking deeply about her failure as a bodyguard. As a protector. As a tool. 

The next dummy didn’t stand a chance, her movements and swings becoming vicious and at this point; unpredictable. Slashing at it, making stuffing fly everywhere, tears in her eyes as she kept replaying her failure as a bodyguard over and over. All it took was one miscalculated thrust into the air. The blade slipped out of her hand, and with furrowed eyebrows, she looked up at it to catch it again.

As if someone punched her right in the chest, she stumbled back, blood dripping onto the floor. She looked at the blade sticking from her chest, and fell backward, gazing into the ceiling. She was a failure at this, too, she supposed, and then, she closed her eyes.

[---]

Chiaki couldn’t even pick up her game. The news of Peko’s passing had been given to the class, and it was greeted with mournful silence. Nobody could believe it happened again, a day after Teruteru and Ryota’s deaths, too. Ibuki had possibly been right, Chiaki thought, what if they all were to die soon? 

She would’ve tried to call Hajime, but what if he didn’t answer? He had been awfully silent during these past few days, and Chiaki just wanted to hear his voice. She wasn’t handling the deaths of her friends well at all, it was making her lose interest in almost everything. Now all she could think was; Who could be next? Who will go before her very eyes?

She didn’t want to think this way, but she couldn’t help it. It was as if the universe decided that her classmates weren’t worthy of living, which she really hoped wasn’t the case. Unless… maybe… someone was offing them one by one? But that couldn’t possibly be true, who was doing this to her classmates?! Why her classmates?! Why her friends?! Chiaki shut her eyes, trembling as she let it all sink it.

Her hand moved to pick up her phone without her really thinking, and she pressed a contact. It rang… but nobody picked up.

**_[Peko Pekoyama has logged offline… 8/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess she really cut through her emotions, huh? Huh?  
> Sorry. not really.  
> Well! Another one down, more to go! Wonder who's next?  
> Also, I hope I'm writing these characters correctly, I'm not really sure heh  
> Also also, these next four chapters... are going to happen within a day. That's right! Four people down within a single day. Here's a hint: It's a friend group, let's call 'em... the Twilight Gang. (No, let's not, actually. That's terrible.)  
> The final also: I wonder whatever happened to Hajime?


	8. Mahiru Koizumi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mahiru sits outside with the rest of her class, seeing them depressed. She gets a great idea, and goes to execute it! But instead, she's going to get executed.

It was Miss Yukizome’s idea to spend a bit of time outside of the classroom, possibly due to the increasing number of empty seats. At least it was a beautiful day, but Mahiru could find no passion behind the pictures she was taking. Instead, she sat down underneath a tree and went through her camera roll, sadly smiling at the pictures of their fallen classmates. There was one of all of them having a picnic together, one of them having a small gaming party. 

She felt tears start to fall, so she took a deep breath and slumped against the tree, glancing over at her classmates that were alive instead. Most of them were just sitting by each other, like Hiyoko and Mikan- which was a sight Mahiru didn’t expect- but some were a bit far from the group, like Gundham and Ibuki. The sight made Mahiru herself upset, as it seemed they were all devoid of hope. 

What could she do about their despair? Nothing would be able to cheer them up, just like nothing was able to cheer her up when Sato died. But… maybe there was at least something! They had to remember their friends, not wallow in sadness because they weren’t here! 

A thought crossed her mind, an idea slowly forming, and she brought out her camera in hopes to bring it to life. She went through the photo roll, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration, then a triumphant smirk went across her face. Yes! Making a memorial for their classmates will make them remember the happier moments, not stare off with tears in their eyes.

Mahiru bounced up, determination lighting up her gaze as she snuck away from the small area they were all sitting around in. She just needed to go inside the school, print out the pictures, make a memorial, and be back to the rest before Chisa noticed she was gone! It may have sounded impossible, but she… she should leave a note. 

Quickly writing up a note and leaving it where she was just sitting, Mahiru then, once more, snuck away. As she was going through the pretty covered garden- such picture-worthy trees-, she spotted someone she didn’t think she’d see, mostly because their class was indoors.

“Hey, are you lost or something? Your class is still in session, isn’t it?” She asked as they started to come closer. “I said are you lost or someth-”

It felt as if she was merely kicked in the stomach, but that was not the case. She looked down as laughter came from the other, staring at the blood gushing down as the knife was pulled out. Then another jab right next to it. Blood gurgled into her throat as she slowly stumbled down, trying to take a picture of the culprit. Another. Then another. Both stabs and photos were being executed, and she felt even more unbearable pain as the knife twisted and was torn out.

Then, she took her last picture she’d ever take.

[---]

Chiaki looked around at her friends. They were all silent, staring either into the sky or into the ground, trying not to stare at anyone else. There was nothing she could do. They were all too focused on the deaths of their classmates, which Chiaki completely understood. It felt as if every time she remembered them… her chest hurt unfathomably so.

Hajime still wouldn’t answer her calls. She even tried to go to his class once, but apparently, he no longer went to the school. Where did he go? Why won’t he answer? Did something wrong happen to him as well? Even after he promised? No, she shouldn’t think about this. Not now. Not when her other classmates were upset. She had to be strong as their class representative. She had to be.

Sighing, she looked up from her black screened Game Girl, looking once more at her friends. Some of them were separated, like Gundham or Ibuki, and Mahiru near the tree. Chiaki stared at the empty spot where the photographer just was. She slowly got up and walked over, noticing a piece of paper laid on the ground underneath the oak. Picking it up, she read the quickly written words.

“Went off to the school for a surprise! Guess I’ll have to lift this group’s spirits myself.” 

What? Chiaki didn’t feel so good about this. She then saw Hiyoko next to her, one of Mahiru’s closest friends.

“...Where did she go?” Hiyoko’s voice was uncharacteristically small and barely a whisper. It physically hurt Chiaki to hear such a difference.

“U-um, she wrote down that she was just going to the school for a surprise,” Chiaki informed, starting to shake a bit.

“...” Hiyoko stared at the paper. “I’m going to go find her.”

Chiaki watched as the dancer walked off towards the school, moving slowly as if trudging through sludge. Maybe she should go with her, just in case… just in case what? It wasn’t as if Mahiru died, right? Before she knew it, she was going across the foliage garden of the school, going after Hiyoko. Her thoughts were muddled with fear, why did Mahiru go off like that? Didn’t she know how this would make the class feel? No, no, Chiaki shouldn’t think that way. Mahiru was fine.

A scream sliced through her thoughts like a sword- a bad analogy. She snapped her head up, kicking off into a run towards the scream. Ahead, she saw Hiyoko standing over something on the ground. She approached, her movements slowing to a stumble. Mahiru was laying down, her limbs sprawled awkwardly as green grass was stained red. Multiple stab wounds were through her shirt as her wide, green eyes stared into nothing. Her camera was in one hand, her index finger still over the capture button.

This was a clear murder. Someone murdered one of Chiaki’s classmates- one of her friends. Who would do such a thing? She brought a hand to her mouth, feeling the tears go down as she heard Chisa and some of the others approach. Frantically she turned, shaking her head at her teacher, tears in her eyes. Miss Yukizome caught on, but it was too late, as Mikan let out a wail and rushed over. 

“Wh-who d-d-did this?” She shakily asked, the nurse leaning over Mahiru’s body.

“Well, gee, if we knew, we’d probably have caught the murderer by now!” Hiyoko snapped at her, her hands balled up into fists. “How stupid can you be? Do you think if we merely just asked the fucking question ‘who did this’ we’d find them? You stupid, ugly, failure...” She trailed off, seemingly to stare at Mahiru.

Even though this was usual- although, it was toned down significantly nowadays- Mikan got up, began to cry, then ran off towards the school. Chiaki wanted to rush after her… she closed her eyes to think, then took off after Mikan.

**_[Mahiru Koizumi has logged offline… 7/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing Mahiru is hard, and so is the rest of 'em.  
> Also, are you enjoying this so far? I hope so!  
> Also, also, no, I shall not answer any questions about Hajimeme. But I'll give you one hint: He'll show up. :)  
> Now dead or alive; let's see about that.


	9. Mikan Tsumiki

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mikan is in tears after what happened to what she thought was her friend, and after Hiyoko yelled at her, so she runs to the school classroom. Wish her a great trip!

Tears rolled down her face as she ran towards Hope’s Peak. She thought they were all finally getting along… then death. So, so much death! She couldn’t help any of them, they were all so sudden or out of her expertise! Then that comment Hiyoko made, it was like resetting all of their progress of becoming friends. Now that Mahiru was gone, it made Mikan feel so weak! She was supposed to be a nurse!

She ran through the doors, stumbling a bit but continued sprinting through the halls. There was a shout behind her, someone from the year below her, but she didn’t care. She didn’t deserve friends if all she was going to do was let them die! All she ever did was let people down, even when they were nice to her. Sniffling, she ran up the stairs, going for their classroom to cry alone, in the corner probably. 

After running up the stairs, she tripped and nearly fell backward down them, but caught herself on the banister. That could’ve spelled disaster, for anyone! Mikan wiped away her tears and continued going down the hall, tears blurring her vision and making it impossible for her to see the oncoming dangers- or perhaps danger.

She then tripped over something, hearing laughter from behind. Of course, nobody liked her, of course, they would trip her… what…? Mikan shakily lifted herself up with her arms, seeing blood drip from her abdomen where a scalpel with tape residue was.

She rolled on her back, then nearly squealed in pain as her arm went into contact with something. She lifted her arm, and nearly giggled when she saw a syringe, fully pushed and everything. This was kind of funny if she thought about it. Although, the pain was starting to engulf her and the numbing feeling of nothingness was slowly encompassing her sight and touch. All she ever wanted to do was heal people weaker than her, take care of them, and be the person they depended on.

But why would she ever get anything she wanted? How could Mikan ever have friends? Now she never will, because the nothingness was already here, and she stopped persisting.

[---]

Chiaki rushed after Mikan, hoping to catch up to her, but the nurse had a head start already. She went through the doors, looking around. Trying all her might, the gamer ran after her down the hall, trying to hurry. What if something happened to her?! What if someone really WAS targeting all of them?!

A hand suddenly grasped her arm, making her skid to a stop and nearly tumble with the force. She looked and saw a very stern student with black hair and a white jacket. His eyebrows were furrowed with fury, and he crossed his arms. Chiaki knew he was part of the class below hers, but what was his name?

“Running in the halls is against School Policy!” He shouted in a chastising tone.

Um, I’m sorry, but I have to catch my friend-” Chiaki was interrupted.

“I see, you are with the other rule breaker! I’m going to have to tell the principal of your lacking behavior.” He puts his fists on his hips. “Give me your names!”

‘U-um, I’m really sorry. I’m Chiaki Nanami, and-” With quick thinking, she pointed behind him, really hoping this worked. “Some people are fighting!”

To her surprise, it actually did work, and the student did turn around. When he did, Chiaki ran like hell to follow Mikan. Behind her, the guy shouted, and the gamer hoped he didn’t try to follow. Once she rounded a corner, she reached the stairs to the floor holding her classroom. Maybe Mikan went back to the classroom!

She ran up, stopping at the top, and freezing. She took a few reluctant steps forward, staring. Mikan was on the hallway floor with an object stabbed into her abdomen, and a syringe in her arm. Chiaki stepped closer, tears in the corner of her eyes. Not again… 

A scream behind her sounded, and she turned. Hiyoko was at the top of the stairs, and it seemed time moved slowly. Hiyoko took a step back and lost balance. Chiaki gave a shout, reaching out her hand to catch the dancer before…

**_[Mikan Tsumiki has logged offline… 6/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I had to name anyone that was hardest to write IT WOULD BE MIKAN.   
> Hey look, two people down in one day. Let's get it to three, shall we?  
> Also, I read all your comments and I love the theories you guys have :) It's so cool to have people theorizing about my fanfic!  
> Also: CLIFFHANGERS!  
> Also also also, sorry about the short chapters, I don't want to drag anything out.


	10. Hiyoko Saionji

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiyoko contemplates a few things after Mahiru's death, then realizes her mistake. so, she sets out to find Mikan.

With a piercing glare, she watched as Mikan ran, with Chiaki going after her. She folded her arms, tears starting to run down her face. Trembling, she looked down at Mahiru, hearing Miss Yukizome talk to the rest of the stupid class. Whatever, Hiyoko didn’t care about them! They were all untrustworthy anyway, but Mahiru wasn’t! She was the best big sis Hiyoko could have ever wanted. Now she was gone.

Sure, she started becoming friends with others, like that disgusting pig Mikan or that idiotic musician Ibuki like Mahiru was, but that was fake! All fake! They were untrustworthy. She kept wiping the tears on the sleeve of her kimono, sniffling as she gazed at Mahiru’s body. What would she say right now? 

Probably something like ‘Kiyoko, be nice to Mikan!’ or ‘Hiyoko, go apologize!’ but why should she? Why should she apologize when… when Mahiru was gone? The only person to actually believe she could be nice for a change. The only person who wasn’t mean to Hiyoko. The only person who cared. Why didn’t Hiyoko stick by her? Why did she have to go and try and care about Mikan?

‘Hiyoko, stop being so hard on yourself!’ It was like she could actually hear what Mahiru would say. She sniffled, swallowing thickly as unbearing sorrow overcame her. Even more tears came pouring out, and Hiyoko began sobbing. She couldn’t stop being hard on herself, if only she had cared more and stuck by Mahiru!

‘Chin up already, you have a friend to find.’ What…? Hiyoko whimpered. She didn’t consider Mikan a friend! Mahiru was her only friend! Why would she ever consider gross, disgusting Mikan as a friend? Even if she was becoming nicer to others thanks to Mahiru. Hiyoko stopped bawling for a moment, hiccuping only slightly. Would… would it hurt Mahiru to know that Hiyoko reverted back to being a jerk?

Everything Mahiru tried to teach her, would that all go down the drain? Hiyoko sniffled, thinking seriously about this. She thought about what would happen if Mikan also died, would she care? A thought answered her. She would because Mahiru taught her to care about others. 

“Okay, Mahiru…” She whispered hoarsely. “I’ll go find Mikan… for you.” Then, she trudged off towards the school where Chiaki ran.   
It was pretty easy to follow Chiaki since she was seemingly stopped by some lower year student. Hiyoko didn’t run while the student who stopped Chiaki was still there, but when his back was turned she bolted. Seeing Chiaki go up the stairs, she followed. Then stopped. Then screamed.

In shock, she tried taking a step back as she stared at Mikan’s corpse, but there was no ground. She fell backward, seeing the class representative reach out. But it was too late. Hiyoko fell down the stairs, and there was only abominable pain in her neck for a second. The dancer would never dance again.

[---]

“No, no, no!” Chiaki cried out, looking down at Hiyoko’s now dead form. It was a grisly sight, as even she heard the loud crack and thud as the dancer’s neck snapped on the way down. “Not you, too! Please, stop! Someone, stop this!” She cried more, sobbing into her hands. She could’ve saved her! If only she could have been quicker. For both of them. “Please…”

She fell to her knees, sobbing at the ground. It was no use. No matter what she tried, all of her friends died. When will it end? Chiaki didn’t know how long she was sitting there, sobbing into her sleeves as she hugged her knees, but she felt a nudge at her shoulder at some point. 

Looking up, she saw the blurry figure of Miss Yukizome through her tears, and she reluctantly got up, following the teacher hand in hand away from the scene. She saw EMTs take away her friends, and she wanted to cry all over again. It… won’t ever end, will it?

What if Hajime… was also gone?

**_[Hiyoko Saionji has logged offline… 5/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alternative Title: Hiyoko Gets Character Development Then Fucking Dies (or just y'know, Chapter 3 in the game)  
> Also, this is after Hiyoko gets her growth spurt, but it is an alternate universe and all so some things don't align.  
> And no, this isn't late. It's 12:00 rn what are you talking about.  
> Almost to the end. Hmm.


	11. Ibuki Mioda

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ibuki decides to write a song for her friends' more happy moments. Will she ever string the first chord, though?

Just five hours ago, Ibuki lost three more of her friends. The musician sat down on the music room’s stage edge, not feeling up to making a song. How could she, there was no celebration to be made! Almost all of Ibuki’s music was written for celebrations, like birthdays or achievements! There was no reason to celebrate death.

She kicked her legs, staring at the floor, a flood of sadness overtaking every other emotion she had. School hours were over, but students were still allowed to go to certain rooms to “hone their talents” or something like that. Nobody was really around the music room, so Ibuki was all alone with just her sad thoughts and longing memories. All of her close friends… gone, as if they never existed.

With another sigh, she dropped backward, now laying down on the stage, staring up at the lights. It felt as if she’d never write a happy song again. All she had was mournful lyrics about how all her friends should still be here. Was her original freakout right? Were they all going to die before this month was over? She clamped her hands on her head, cold sweat running down her face. They were all going to totally die, weren’t they?!

Letting out a scream, Ibuki kicked out her legs onto the stage, curling up in the fetal position, her screaming quieting down until she was silently crying. Nothing would ever be the same, there was no more good in the world. Ibuki stayed laid down, still thinking of when her friends were alive and how good the world was then. She hugged her knees to her chest, rolling to her other side.

Something caught her eye on the wall. The music room was for musical ultimates to hone their talents, and they may have subconsciously had their own corners of the room to put things in. Ibuki’s corner was on the right side of the stage where she put all sorts of images, like of her friends, or items scattered in that specific corner, like the American clacker. But this something was a photo of all of Ibuki’s friends, laughing and having a good time.

Seeing the photo made Ibuki rethink the situation. What was she doing? She was being all mopey and sad when her friends’ lives were full of fun and happiness! They might be gone, but she could do something about that! Thinking about it made her giddy and excited. Bouncing up from her crying position, Ibuki made her way to the guitar setup, a spring in her step as she stepped over the knocked over wet floor sign.

Already whistling a tune that sounded right for a song that encompassed her departed friends’ souls, she picked up the electric chord. Swinging it a bit, she plugged it in, her eyes widening in a too late realization of the wet socket. She saw sparks flying before she felt excruciating pain shoot up from her arm to her chest. 

The next thing she knew she was on her back, the entire room filled with smoke as the other half was on fire. Her chest was in agony, and she could barely move from the pain. Then, it was all gone, and so was she.

[---]

She heard the fire alarm in the school from her dorm. Like other students, Chiaki headed out and looked towards the school where smoke was flooding out of a specific window, and memory says it was the music room. The gamer tilted her head confusedly, wiping away dried tear stains on her cheeks, she looked at the firefighters coming in. 

Waiting for the commotion to stop, Chiaki continued to look at the school. Her instinct was to grab her phone and dial Hajime’s number, to know if he was seeing this. But then she remembered, and she looked down in disappointment. She hoped Hajime the best, wherever he was. New sirens made her look up and see an ambulance coming in towards the school.

Seeing it made her heart practically stop, remembering all the times she saw one so far. Her new instinct kicked in, and she started looking around the dorms. In her mind, she kept a head count for the classmates she was able to see; Nekomaru, Gundham, Nagito… wait. Where was Ibuki?

Fear hammering in her chest, Chiaki rushed towards the front of the school and was able to see the ambulance wheeling away a gurney. There was plastic covering on top of what looked to be a body, but what terrified her was when a badly burned arm was dangling from it. Black nail polish, colorful bands… 

“No… not again…” Chiaki choked back tears, covering her mouth. With nobody to go to, she felt utterly alone.

**_[Ibuki Mioda has logged offline… 4/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Four in one day, haha!  
> I had to look up what being electrocuted felt like, oof  
> Horrifying.  
> See you Friday, guys :), it's one of the longer chapters I've written for this.


	12. Gundham Tanaka

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gundham just wants to brood alone in his room, but a certain girl from a year below him as a task for him.

Just yesterday Class 77-B lost four students in one single day. There was no time to mourn for any of their classmates with the rate of them all dying. Gundham continued staring down at his desk, thinking of the fallen who had their life taken by unforeseen circumstances. Or perhaps it could have been foreseen, and was it a planned account? With that logic, Sonia’s death was planned? Then, technically, her promise wasn’t broken.

No matter how much he thought of it, it was true. The princess had broken their shared promise only seconds after it was made, and Gundham watched her die. The Four Dark Devas of Destruction were also unnerved by this, as their chattering and squeaking had ceased in volume since Sonia’s untimely demise. However, it was the will of casualty, wasn’t it? 

The bell rang, and Gundham got up, ready to go to his private chamber and busy his mind with his demon-beasts so it didn’t roam. However, as he started for the door, the class representative gave out a small ‘hey hey’ to the remaining classmates. He turned, and she was standing up, clear red eyes and dried tears on her face. 

“U-um, I just want you all to know to be safe, okay?” She said, fiddling her thumbs.

“Of course! You better make sure you’re safe as well!” Nekomaru responded in his roar-ish tone.

“Yes, we all should watch our steps.” Nagito smiled while holding out his arms.

Gundham gave a nod, then left the classroom. He had no time to stand idly by and make broken promises, he had his empire to take care of. In the halls of the truly cursed academy, he was stopped by some student a year below him. She was practically smacking gum annoyingly, and she looked like she was already fed up with the conversation yet to be had. Hopefully, Gundham could evade this conversation.

“Heeey, you’re like, the Ultimate Breeder, right? Good with animals and stuff?” The girl with the pigtails asked, putting a hand on her hip.

“Tch. I suppose you could put it in such a way, why do you wish to know, mortal?” It appeared he wasn’t going to get out of a conversation with this annoying human.

“Well, I know a friend, whose dad owns an aquarium, and like, they’ve got a sick whale they need someone to help out and stuff.” The stereotypical teen girl said, resituating her uncomfortably revealing shirt in what looked like boredom. “They like, need your help, or something.”

“Tell your friend my apologies, but I do not work with the demons in the water.” He began walking away, until the teen began talking once more.

“Poor whale…” Her voice seemed to quiver with near-to tears. “It’s probably going to die because of its sickness, all alone without a clue… if only someone who loved animals could help it… but I guess there really is no hope for it…” 

Gundham closed his eyes, his Dark Devas chittering in his scarf. “Fine, give me the route to this water beast.”

The pigtailed girl smirked and handed him a scrap of notebook papers with directions. Firstly, Gundham went to his dorm to put his Dark Devas in their respective cage, it would be too dangerous to get them near deep water. They tilted their heads, but nonetheless went about eating the treats and feed he gave them. Then, he headed out towards this apparent sick whale, wondering what could be the matter with such a beast- or what type it was.

He got to the aquarium, which didn’t exactly look like any aquarium he’s seen- although he hasn’t been to many. It looked more like an old, run-down warehouse with a superficial sign at the front. Resituating his scarf as he walked inside, looking around at the almost emptiness of the warehouse, it couldn’t be an aquarium with its vast space. To his annoyance, the pig-tailed girl was there.

“Heeey! You came! Thank goodness, because it doesn’t look like it’s gonna live any much longer. C’mon!” The girl led the way to the large tank in the middle of the ‘aquarium’, and Gundham grimaced at the size. If this was holding an orca, he’d have to condemn whoever put it there. 

“Just climb up on that ladder over there, and do whatever you people do.” Another word from that student and Gundham was going to curse her.

He climbed up the step ladder- it looked like what you would put in a swimming pool- and looked in at the above tank. At first, he didn’t see anything, but then he saw a gray dorsal fin breach the surface, and the shadowy figure of a bull shark underneath. Was he deceived?! This was no sick orca, it looked more like a hungry shark! Just as he went to turn to the annoying fiend, there was a forceful shove on his back and he was sent into the tank itself.

Now, Gundham wasn’t a water-type person, since the ocean was close to the gates of the underworld- and he wasn’t the best swimmer. Since he had his heavy clothing and scarf, he barely had a chance of making it out of the godforsaken shark tank. He had no time to comprehend the fact that someone sent him to his death, only that he had to fight for his life. Of all the times he had tried to swim, which wasn’t many, he did remember to try and kick upward. 

After taking the long jacket off, he was able to somewhat get up towards the surface, and he reached blindly, feeling a grip on the side. A triumphant smile crept onto his face as he took a deep breath as he broke the surface, holding onto the tank edge. It didn’t last. He hadn’t been paying attention to where the bull shark was, and he felt something latch onto one of the platform boots he had been unable to take off underwater. The smile fell.

With barely any time to suck in a breath, he was being dragged forcefully underwater, a shark latched onto his leg. He put his hands gently on the shark’s nose, trying to push forward on it and pull his leg out from its mighty jaws. It didn’t work, and he knew that trying to persuade it with little time and while underwater was no option. Then, he released whatever air he had, and took an involuntary breath, feeling water fill his throat and lungs. Enfeebled by the involuntary breath, he was half-conscious now, his normal fight response dwindling to nothing. The shark, unable to release it’s mighty mandible from the black platform boots, bit down completely. 

This was when Gundham was claimed by the darkness.

[---]

Chiaki watched as her classmates walked out after their claims of being safe. That managed to tug a small smile on her face, and she herself walked from the classroom. As she walked down the halls, she saw a girl with pinkish blonde pigtails talking to Gundham in the hall. For some reason, pure dread and panic settled in her stomach as she saw Gundham sigh and take something from this girl. Why was she panicked over this interaction? Especially after that smirk the pigtailed girl gave?

Trying to ease her mind, she tried going to her dorm, but then once again saw Gundham leaving the boys’ dorms with a piece of paper. The overwhelming feeling of dread made her start to follow. Trying to justify this action, she merely put it as ‘checking up on a friend’, since their classmates’ deaths- especially Sonia’s- Gundham was unnaturally quiet. So this was just checking up on him.

She followed the breeder to a warehouse, a very old looking one at that, which had a hastily put together looking sign at the front. Why would he go here? The pit in her stomach grew. Quietly, she followed, hoping with all her might she was wrong about this feeling.

She was able to watch Gundham climb the ladder, and saw the pigtailed girl snickering behind him. Confused, she watched as Gundham looked incredibly angry, and the pigtailed girl climbing the ladder. With a jolt of alarm, Chiaki watched as the girl pushed Gundham into the tank, and walked away. No! 

Running over, she tried to look over the edge of the tank, tears in her eyes. She saw Gundham nearly get out, only to be dragged back in. Taking out her phone, she dialed an ambulance, hoping for them to come quickly.

“Please, please…” She waited for them to come with cold icy fear in her blood. She looked over at the tank, and her shoulders dropped. Something was floating in the water, and it looked to be a ripped piece of scarf, surrounded by cloudy red water.

The ambulance came. They were too late, Chiaki was too late. She was taken back to the academy’s dorms and happened to look over at the boys’ dorms. She saw the pigtailed girl again, walking away with a smirk, talking to someone who looked almost like her but with shorter blue-ish hair, and in her hands was a small cage. Four hamsters were in the cage. 

She, of course, ran after them- those weren’t their hamsters! But then as soon as they turned a corner, Chiaki lost them. Great, she couldn’t even save her classmates’ pets. 

She went to her dorm, trudging along, and called Hajime. His voice message answered instead, like it always has been.

**_[Gundham Tanaka has logged offline… 3/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Imma tell you right now, this guy was hard to write a death for.  
> And now... a reading of my search history:  
> "is there an underwater animal that drowns it's prey and eats it"  
> "do sharks eat a whole person"  
> "do sharks eat a whole person when hungry"  
> "are humans bad for sharks to eat"  
> "what does drowning feel like"  
> "what does drowning feel like in precise detail"  
> "can a bull shark bite someone's limb clean off"


	13. Nekomaru Nidai

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nekomaru learns of another dead classmate. His heart isn't taking it too well.

After the events of two days ago, Nekomaru tried to keep his spirits up. He sat in class, trying to focus on the remainders of his classmates.

When Miss. Yukizome walked in with that grim expression, and Chiaki walked in with a haunted face- just like it had been when she found the girls two days ago- Nekomaru clenched his fists. It couldn’t have happened again, right, that couldn’t have been possible, right? The team manager looked around, spotting Nagito- but not Gundham.

He couldn’t believe this, another classmate they usually saw every day, gone. The spirits in the classroom were down once more, and Nekomaru won’t lie, his was as well. 

Looking around, the classroom was almost empty- yet everyone that could show up was there. It made his chest hurt to see so many desks empty with a vase and flower on top. There was a new thing in the back of the class, a memorial for the fallen classmates. It had all of their pictures, but the fact was that the number was growing.

It wasn’t right, they shouldn’t be dying one after another! And what was the academy doing- Nekomaru swore he didn’t see a thing about his classmates outside of the school.

His chest began hurting, and he took a deep breath before furrowing his eyebrows in fury. Damn it, he was starting to think back to Akane. He could have helped her, if only he was quicker- maybe he could have helped them all.

Once again, his chest began hurting- but much worse than ever before. Those doctors had said that stress might speed it up…

He shook his head and excused himself from the classroom. Getting up, he took a few steps to the door.

His chest was in abominable pain.

He could barely handle it.

His vision was turning black- he was careening towards the floor.

He tried to fight it, but in the end, he couldn’t manage it, and his heart stopped.

[---]

She thought that the team manager would be the last person to ever go, because of his strong will and perseverance. But then- she, along with Nagito and Miss. Yukizome, saw him drop right before the door after saying he had to go. Her heart dropped along with him. Chiaki began to shake, hoping with all her heart that he wasn’t dead.

But hope never did win, did it? No matter how hard she tried to hope for the best, everything crashed and burned around her. Her friends were all dying, Hajime never answered nor was he ever found, and she felt utterly alone. How could anything become better when almost all of the class was dead in under a month? Her friends, all gone, in a month.

She looked up from where she had apparently been crying- she didn’t notice, then she saw Nagito looking out as the paramedics took away Nekomaru. Right, she couldn’t break down now, there was still one friend who needed her. As long as she thought of her last remaining friend, she could still see a fragment of hope out there.

Chiaki knew that she had to protect her friend. This time, she’s going to make sure nothing bad happens to the lucky student. Hopefully, his luck combined with her determination to keep him alive will serve true in the end… wherever the end may be!

**_[Nekomaru Nidai has logged offline… 2/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ba-dum... ba-dum... ba-ba-ba...  
> I tried doing a heartbeat pattern with the paragraphs, did I do good?  
> Also, almost to the end! I shall reveal now, Chiaki's chapter is going to have an art piece I drew!


	14. Nagito Komaeda

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nagito spends a day with Chiaki, thinking of how lucky he's been lately. Ever hear of his luck cycles?

It was incredibly unlucky, wasn’t it? To become close with his classmates, and then they all began dying, one by one, over the course of a few weeks. It wasn’t a very hopeful situation, Nagito thought. In fact… it induced despair, one might say. The lucky student smirked at the thought, almost laughing if he wasn’t walking in public. Despair was merely a stepping stone to hope, after all. Somewhere, there is hope building up, ready to shine upon the dull class of just two students. 

He put his hands in his jacket pockets, rounding a corner into an alleyway. Chiaki had told him to meet her in this specific alleyway between the cafe and thrift store- ah, wait. This was the alleyway next over. Oh well, he better just back up and go into the correct alleyway. He turned around, and right before he took a step, an air conditioner fell from nowhere right in front of him.

“Woah!” Nagito exclaimed, then laughed. “I could’ve died from that!”

He had stepped back from the jolt of surprise from seeing the air conditioner fall, and supposedly that was pretty lucky because another one fell right where he just was! Taking another thought, he decided to go through the alleyway and round the next corner instead. Wouldn’t want to get hit by one of those.

Stepping out onto the sidewalk next to a lamppost, his phone fell out of his pocket. Giving a small laugh about how he should’ve pocketed it better, he bent down to pick it up and felt something whizz above his head. Looking up, the top of his head bumped into something sticking out from the post. Taking a step back, he saw a large knife lodged into the metal. Shrugging, he rounded the building and went into the alleyway next over.

Chiaki was waiting, looking determined about something. Nagito gave a large smile, waving.

“What could the Ultimate Gamer want of me?” He asked, tilting his head and awaiting a response.

“I-I think someone murdered our classmates,” Then, she shook her head, looking even more decisive. “No, I know someone murdered our classmates.”

“Huh?” That wasn’t much of a surprise, actually. Nagito guessed that right around when Teruteru died. An Ultimate Cook couldn’t just die in a place where he’s most apt in. “How do you know?”

“Because… I saw someone push Gundham into the shark tank. I just… haven’t figured out who it is.” The gamer looked melancholic, almost losing that spark of determination.

“Well, I think we can easily figur-” Nagito was interrupted by a bowling ball crashing right down beside him.

“Are you okay?!” Chiaki asked with alarm, but Nagito dismissively waved.

“I’m fine, it missed me.” He smiled, then held out his hands to express his next words. “Now where was I? Oh right, we can easily figure out the murderer if we-” Once more, he was interrupted by something dropping from the sky, but this time it landed in his hands. 

Staring down at it, it looked like a bundle of red cylinders with a timer on it and wires all around, sticking out from the ends mostly. He tilted his head, making a small ‘oh’ sound, as he realized it was dynamite. Chiaki looked incredibly freaked out again, about to say something but Nagito interrupted her.

“Now this is just ridiculous.” He stated. “Why was this falling from the sky? Oh,” He, again, waved dismissively at Chiaki. “You don’t have to worry, it looks as if it was supposed to be denoted by now, but I think it’s a dud.”

“...Why don’t we go somewhere else?” The gamer suggested, and Nagito agreed. He left the bundle of dynamite in the alleyway, and they set off.

As they walked, Nagito tried, again, to tell her how they could find out who this murderer was. If she remembered what they looked like, then they could try going into the school files and searching there. With any luck, they’d find something and they could figure out what to do from there. As long as they knew who it was, they could truly find true hope within the despair caused by that ‘pig-tailed girl’.

They went to cross the street, Chiaki suggesting they go to a food stand to think it over a snack, she pressed the sidewalk button, but Nagito didn’t like waiting for those. They took too long. Without looking both ways- oops- Nagito started crossing and heard a shout from Chiaki. He wondered why she shouted, it’s not like anything was coming. He looked over and saw two trucks, one coming from each side. The drivers didn’t see him yet. Nagito stopped, looking from the two trucks with a bit of shock, yet also intrigue. Then, they both breaked, and he looked up. Red lights came in the nick of time, and the lucky student made a small ‘oh’ sound.

“Why didn’t you wait for the red light?!” Chiaki asked as she ran over to him, trying to hurry across the street.

“They take too long,” He merely responded. “But they didn’t hit me. How lucky for me that the red light turned on just in time!”

“You can’t just risk your life, blindly following your luck!” Chiaki exclaimed, looking incredibly worried and angry.

“But I don’t follow my luck blindly. I just trust in it, although…” With his next words, he sounded serious and dark. “I’ve been having too much good luck lately. I wonder when the cycle will end?”

“...Please be more careful,” Chiaki asked, sighing.

“Okay, okay.” Nagito put his hands up in defeat, then they went towards the food stands.

Just as they made it towards the stands, Nagito slipped on a stray piece of paper, and he grabbed onto Chiaki’s sleeve, ultimately pulling her down with him. As they went down, they saw a double-edged axe spinning right where they were standing. Chiaki let out a surprised yelp as she hit the ground, seeing the axe cut into a decorative tree.

“Wh-what?” She blinked multiple times.

“...Weird, I thought that would be when my good luck ends.” Nagito got up, brushing himself off. “Maybe it will tomorrow, then. Wonder why things have been trying to kill me.”

“Wait- what?”

“Huh? Oh, this has been happening all day. This morning I wasn’t watching where I was going and nearly stepped on glass. I only avoided it because a ball bounced by, making me look down at it.” 

Chiaki looked ultimately concerned, then there was a smile. A smile of a familiar feeling, well, not just a feeling. It was a smile Nagito recognized as hope. Ah, he got it.

“You think I’m not going to die because I’m the ultimate lucky student?” He voiced her thoughts aloud.

“...No, I don’t think you’ll die. But not because of your title, but because… I hope for it. I hope for your life to be long.” Chiaki straightened, looking like her determined self. “I hope you’ll live through all the accidents that happen to you. All we have left is hope, Nagito, we have to believe in it.”

“Wow…” Nagito raised his eyebrows, smiling. “Are you suggesting we’re the hope for our class? Or that we have hope that we’ll live through this despaired phenomena?”

“I… I’m unsure. Both?” She tilted her head, and Nagito sighed in disappointment.

“Don’t even know what hope you believe in. Come on, we’re next, and I’m pretty hungry.” Nagito stepped up, buying a container of grapes. He wasn’t that hungry.  
Chiaki bought a bag of chips, and they sat on a bench in silence. It was a nice day, no crowds, and just the occasional car zooming by. The kind of day Nagito loved, it wasn’t loud at all. Then, Chiaki got up, looking alarmed at first, taking out her phone. Her face lit up like a Christmas tree. 

“I’m going to take this real quick!” She rushed off to somewhere more private.

Nagito shrugged, he didn’t mind. He continued eating his grapes, even as a bullet hit the bench’s back. His good luck was really stuffed today, but he couldn’t help but wonder why so many things tried to kill him today. Was it the murderer Chiaki was talking about? Right, he should think more about that. Pig-tailed girl, huh? Didn’t he once see someone fitting that description walking with a class a year lower than them? Or was it someone else?

He threw a grape in his mouth, then his eyes widened. The grape had gone too far, and lodged in his throat. He couldn’t cough, he couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t make a sound. He tried to take it out with his hands, but it didn’t budge. He lurched forward, pounding on the bench arm, trying to get someone’s attention. It was pretty unlucky to spend a day outside where there weren't a lot of people around, huh? It was also unlucky to choke. 

His consciousness started fading, and he couldn’t help but try to laugh. Of all the things to kill him today. He slumped forward, silently laughing. Then, he died smiling.

[---]

Chiaki shouldn’t have left. She just got so excited seeing Hajime’s caller ID, she just had to talk somewhere private. But there was only silence on the other end. She tried to get him to speak, but there was just silence. She had sighed, hanging up and pocketing her phone. As she started going towards the bench, she noticed that something was… off? No, not just off.

Something was wrong, she couldn’t see Nagito sitting on the bench. In fact, he was on the ground, his container of grapes spilled onto the sidewalk and road. He was splayed out awkwardly, as if he had collapsed. His eyes were wide and bloodshot, and there was a large, wicked smile on his face. She crouched next to him, placing a hand on his shoulder and shaking him.

“Nagito? Nagito! Nagito are you okay?!” No, no no! NO! NO NO NO NO!  
One of the food stand vendors came over, asking if something was wrong. Chiaki, though large tears began screaming for help. The ambulance was called. Chiaki saw one of her friends go into an ambulance. For the fourteenth time.

She couldn’t take it anymore.

**_[Nagito Komaeda has logged offline… 1/15 students playing]_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> he choked on a grape


	15. Chiaki Nanami

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chiaki has lost all hope.

She was in an empty classroom, all by herself. Chisa had left a few minutes ago, saying she needed to talk to someone. If she turned around, she would see a memorial for fourteen students, the only memorial built for them. All she could do now was focus on her game, but how could she do that through tears?

Why did all her friends leave? When did they deserve any of this? They were all so young, with bright futures. They all would have known each other for years, have conversations, spend time together during parties or something of that caliber. But no, they were all gone. Chiaki was the only one left, all of her friends were dead. She just… couldn’t accept it.

She had no hope left. It left as soon as she realized Nagito was dead and Hajime would never answer. Why would she have any hope, anyway? What need did she have for hope now that everyone she loved was gone?

She was tired. She felt as if she hadn’t slept in many days, which could be kind of true. Yet, she had tried to sleep just last night, by crying herself to sleep. It had worked, but she had no energy.

She broke out in a cold sweat. She began to think of her dead friends.

Her chest tightened painfully as she thought of the lives they all could have had together, having fun and making memories. The tiredness washed over her, and she slid off her chair onto the ground, her head dropping to one side to stare at the memorial. Tears went down her face as she closed her eyes. She could scarcely hear the door opening, a familiar shout echoing, and someone standing over her.

“...Haji...me…?” She managed, then fell asleep like she normally did. Only this time, she wouldn’t wake up from this nap.

**_[Chiaki Nanami has logged offline… 0/15 students playing]_ **

**_[GAME OVER! RESTART?]_**

**_> YES NO_ **

[---]

…

…

He ran across the courtyard, concern and worry pushing him to run as quick as he could, and also the fact they might notice he escaped.

…

He snuck past the same guard who had punched him earlier during that year with near ease.

…

She hadn’t been returning his calls, and he had been calling all day. Normally, she would’ve responded, like yesterday, that he did call- although, he wasn’t allowed to say anything to her, but he wanted to hear her voice at least. He might have brushed it off as her being mad at him for disappearing for so long, but something… something was telling him this was not the case. There was a pit in his stomach, and it filled with dread.

He ran into the main building, trying to remember where she had said their classroom was. He went up a floor, and another, and went down winding hallways. He hoped desperately she was still there.

He opened the door, sneaking past the teacher, and his eyes widened as he saw Chiaki on the ground. He gave a shout, rushing to her side. Her eyes, seemingly struggling to keep open, stared at him, tears down her cheeks.

“...Haji...me…?” She sounded, then closed her eyes.

Hajime held her, his eyes wide as he felt her pulse stop. No… no…

“Chiaki… Chiaki, please… I’m sorry, you told me I didn’t need it, then I went ahead and… I should’ve been there…” He felt tears down his face, then his face contorted into a smirk. “Why are you crying? I can bring her back.” He shook his head. “But that was with those four hamsters you found in that trash can. How can…” He chuckled. “Aren’t all living things the same when down to the basics?” Taking a deep breath, Hajime picked Chiaki up. “Alright. Don’t worry Chiaki, I’m not letting you go yet.”

**_[ Haj[]m[] []ina[]a has logged online… 1/1[] students playing]_**

****__

**_Y'all deserve some art, so here's their memorial! And a bonus version as well._ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know that Heartbreak syndrome is a real thing?  
> Also, hey, look, a reference to the hamsters :)  
> Also, also, the next installment will be called "Extra Life" and the first chapter will be uploaded on November 2nd, 12:00 EDT  
> ALSO ALSO ALSO, I'm really proud of that art


End file.
